{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/9077c08c-f50e-4ce8-95d1-03fbe7cc72d1/1c0dae4b-cfef-4cbd-819b-2346e1b24a2b?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"StarShipSofa 391 Peter Watts","description":"<p>Coming Up…</p>\n<p>Promo: Class Title: <a href=\"http://mythgard.org/starwars\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">The Force of Star Wars: Examining the Epic</a></p>\n<p></p>\n<p>Main Fiction: “Bethlemen” by <a href=\"http://www.rifters.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Peter Watts</a></p>\n<a href=\"http://www.rifters.com/\" rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\"><b>Peter Watts</b></a> is a (former) scientist, author, and convicted felon who spent the first two decades of his adult life as a marine biologist. After fleeing academia for science fiction he became known for  the habit of appending extensive technical bibliographies onto his novels; this both confers a veneer of credibility and covers his ass against nitpickers.  Described by the <i>Globe & Mail</i> as “one of the very best [hard-sf writers] alive”, the overall effect of his prose is perhaps best summed up by critic James Nicoll: “Whenever I find my will to live becoming too powerful, I read Peter Watts”.\n\nHis debut novel (<i>Starfish</i>) was a NY Times...","author_name":"Tony C Smith"}